In one aspect, this invention relates to a method of providing cardiopulmonary resuscitation. In another aspect, this invention relates to a device for providing cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
Medical emergencies happen all the time, and many lives are saved because a paramedic or passerby can perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and keep the victim breathing and maintain blood circulation until proper medical attention is available. Yet many people are unprepared to provide CPR should the situation arise. Even those who have been properly trained often do not use their training frequently enough to make it easy for them to recall exactly what to do under the pressure of an emergency situation. A simple way to administer CPR would be very desirable.
As an additional factor, many people find the very idea of kissing a corpse to administer CPR to be repugnant. Further, CPR must sometimes be administered under revulsive conditions, such as in the presence of body fluids and/or offensive aromas. Also, the patient may vomit during the administration of CPR. These factors can induce an intense desire in the person administering the CPR to stop. Also, many people are concerned about contracting infectious diseases such as AIDS, tuberculosis, or Hepatitis B by administering CPR, especially to strangers. A technique to administer CPR without requiring intimate contact by the rescuer would be very desirable.
An additional problem is that administering CPR can be physically exhausting. The rescuer must both make the required chest compressions and the required breath cycles many times each minute and may have to continue for an extended period of time. Considerable force must be applied on the chest compressions. Considerable force must also be exerted in order to inflate the patient's chest. Often the rescuer will already be physically exhausted from the ordeal of moving the victim to a place where CPR can be administered or the rescuer will be elderly and not in prime physical condition. A technique for applying CPR that is less physically demanding would be very desirable.
A rescuer's sense of time is often distorted in an emergency situation. It is important during the administration of CPR to perform the compressions and inflations sufficiently rapid to preserve the patient, but not with such rapidity to prematurely exhaust the rescuer. A CPR device to facilitate providing properly timed chest compressions and provide an automatic supply of breathing air timed to the chest compressions would be very desirable.